Our view: A recipe for job growth

A bright future is dawning in northeastern Louisiana, and the only thing in the way is a lack of skills.

Fortunately, there's a plan for that, too.

California has Silicon Valley, and North Carolina has its Research Triangle. In northeastern Louisiana, a region that constantly is reminded about how poor it is, it may be hard to envision, perhaps, but something similar is happening along Interstate 20, a Technology Corridor.

Some can argue the father of this dream is Louisiana Tech University's President Emeritus Dan Reneau, who, as president, established Louisiana Tech's department of biomedical engineering in 1972, making it one of the first of its kind in the United States and only the fifth undergraduate program to become accredited in the nation. Later he established the Institute for Micromanufacturing and the Enterprise Campus Research Park.

Businesses gravitate toward universities that develop strong engineering and computer science programs, taking advantage of the research and students they develop. And slowly, quietly, it's happening.

The recent announcement that Computer Sciences Corp. will open a technology center at the Cyber Innolvation Center's national Cyber Research Park in Bossier City promises 800 well-paying jobs over the next four years. In Monroe, CenturyLink plans to add 800 jobs at its Technology Center for Excellence, which is under construction just north of its corporate headquarters on U.S. 165.

It doesn't stop there. During the past two years technology companies such as Amdocs and IBM have opened new offices in Monroe to support their client CenturyLink.

Such development carries its own momentum, and the only limit to its potential is the ability to fill the demand for workers. For years, northeastern Louisiana residents have heard about a lack of a trained workforce. That certainly could stunt the growth. But here is where the foresight comes in.

The businesses that need the trained workforce are partnering with our institutions of higher education. CSC, for instance, is working with Louisiana Tech and the state to create a pipeline of trained workers. Tech will receive $9 million from the state over the next 10 years to expand programs that will provide properly trained graduates in technology and engineering to fit CSC's needs. The goal is to quadruple the number of graduates in these disciplines.

The University of Louisiana at Monroe is partnering with CenturyLink. Louisiana Delta Community College works with the state in providing FastTrack training to prepare students to take jobs already available in the marketplace.

And the state is initiating its Workforce and Innovation for a Stronger Economy Plan, called the WISE program, with a goal of making Louisiana more competitive for economic development by creating more private partnerships with universities. The state will provide $40 million to colleges and universities to better provide the workforce sought by employers.

Through these programs, a trained workforce should emerge.

Northeastern Louisiana is poised for significant growth in the coming years, and the state has built a structure to feed the growth. Abundant, good-paying jobs should encourage our brightest young people to stay close to home. And all of this is a recipe for a healthier, stronger community.

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Our view: A recipe for job growth

A bright future is dawning in northeastern Louisiana, and the only thing in the way is a lack of skills.